It was the same as usual for the Doctor as he sat at his desk with a fat tower of papers leaning towards him. It never disappeared from his sight, and its aura of defiance only added to the problem.
It was a race against the clock to accomplish the amount Amiya bookmarked for him, but when he finished, the next day wasn't friendly. The hours spent late at night were a detriment. To stay ahead of the game, the Doctor continuously pulled all-nighters to stay on top of his work.
The operators on Rhodes Island never had a problem labeling him as a workaholic. But even a workaholic needed a break every once in a while. Fortunately, it arrived in an activity of a small game.
There was a knock at his door and then the sound of it opening. The noise of feet shuffling across the ground echoed around the chambers of his office. He lifted his weary head to face the three operators in front of him. They were children he knew all too well, but now wasn't the best time for them to be here.
"Doctor, let's play a game!" Suzuran invited.
Suzuran stepped toward the Doctor while Shamare and Popukar stared at him with expectant expressions.
"Eh? Um..." The Doctor's head swiveled around. Amiya was supposed to be by his side, but her presence was missing. "Right, she's on break..."
"Come on, Doctor! We can help you afterward!"
"There's no need. I can handle it all, girls." The Doctor said, waving his hand at the stacks of papers. However, sympathy and worry were their only expressions. "Perhaps this wasn't the best example…"
Suzuran stuck her bottom lip out. "It's okay to ask for some help, Doctor!" She pointed out vehemently, though it was a cute reminder rather than a firm reprimand.
"I don't need any help, though. I'm hitting the daily quota when I reach the bookmark that Amiya has assigned me, so don't feel distressed."
There was no point in forcing children to do his bidding when they could enjoy their lives. And he had plenty of operators he could request for help. It was a choice to work alone. Even when he desperately needed an assistant. But the children weren't the solution.
Suzuran and Popukar looked at the mountain of paperwork and grimaced. As for Shamare, she remained indifferent, but her eyes were also focused on the paperwork. The red-felt bookmark hung from the side, metaphorical miles from where he was. This was another prime illustration of a poor example to present to them when he was stating his case.
"All I'm seeing is how troubled you are, Doctor..." Popukar said, dragging her fingers down from the middle of the stack because of its height. "That's a chainsaw's length of work to do."
"Er... So, what is the game you three wanted to play?" The Doctor asked.
Suzuran's expression lit up. "We wanted to play a game of hide-and-seek, but we wanted one more player, and then we thought of how the Doctor would need a break, so we came over to invite you!"
"Hide-and-seek?" The Doctor echoed.
There were better operators than he they could play with, like Provence or even Amiya, but they sought him out first. At least, that was his impression. But there was zero chance he was rejecting their invitation when they looked forward to playing with him.
"Okay, but one small game. If thirty minutes pass and whoever the seeker is cannot find them, then the hiders win, alright?" The Doctor asked.
"Understood!" Suzuran answered.
Popukar and Shamare replicated Suzuran's sentiment by nodding their heads.
The Doctor looked at his device. He slipped it into his pocket while the three children played a game of rock, paper, scissors to decide the seeker. The role eventually fell to Popukar, who pouted but relented to the results. She turned her back to them to start the count. Once her countdown started from a hundred, the hiders looked at each other, waiting in anticipation for the other to do something.
The Doctor led the initiative. Suzuran and Shamare trailed behind him as Popukar's small voice echoed from his office. For a second, the Doctor expected Suzuran and Shamare to take the lead to hide, but they both stared at him. At that point, the Doctor knew he was the dependable older figure for them.
"Oh... Did you two want to follow me?"
They both nodded their heads, prompting the Doctor to return the gesture and walk down the hallway behind a corner. The Doctor stopped and poked his head from the corner and stared at his office door. He bided his time for the perfect moment when he could sneak back into his office when Popukar left.
Suzuran shuffled closer to his body and imitated him. But because the Doctor was closely pressed up against the wall, she wrapped her hands around his leg and peeked out from there. Shamare did the same. Except Shamare sat on the ground, so her head was lower than Suzuran's.
The Doctor looked at them and observed them for a moment. However, when the sound of Popukar's countdown ceased to exist, the Doctor concealed himself and stayed frozen. Suzuran and Shamare imitated him when they sensed his sudden movement.
"Hmm... Where could they be?" Popukar asked nobody in particular, heading in the opposite direction from their location.
Once silence overtook the scene, the Doctor counted a few seconds just in case Popukar changed her mind, but the muteness of the atmosphere remained the same. He peeked out from the corner to make sure the coast was clear and rushed back inside his office. Suzuran and Shamare sprinted behind the Doctor, staying close to him.
The Doctor dove inside his office after the door opened for them. Once he neared his desk, the Doctor rummaged through the drawers beside his desk until Suzuran peeked into his vision to peer into the drawer. The Doctor pulled his hands away in case he hit Suzuran on the head. A big drop of sweat rolled down his neck in nervousness.
Shamare joined in, walking to the other side of the drawer to see what captivated Suzuran's attention. Shamare placed Morte on his desk so it could look at the delectable goodies. A faint but familiar smell wafted through the air.
"It smells good..." Shamare commented as Suzuran agreed with her by nodding her head.
"Did you two want some? I was thinking of snacking on something before I continue to play the game since it'll take a while unless Popukar finds us quickly." The Doctor said, grabbing a bag of gummies.
"I'm fine, Doctor, but thank you," Suzuran said.
"If only there are apples, Doctor… However, I have not found any," Shamare chimed in.
"Okay, but if you change your mind, you can always tell me."
"Thank you for the offer, Doctor," Suzuran responded.
"Alright, we shouldn't stay around any longer. Let's make our way to a safer haven."
"Okay~!"
Initially, they headed to the kitchen, but Matterhorn and Gummy spotted them. They were temporarily banished from the kitchen, which resulted in the three of them wandering the hallways of Rhodes Island once again.
Another option was the training room, but it was a public place where operators could give away their position by telling Popukar. His office was a cheat code, and it didn't feel right. As for the deck, it was out in the open, and dorms would be uncouth. Their options were limited and restrained to areas where their hidden presence was the key factor.
The Doctor listed options again in his head and frowned. At this rate, they would get caught. Operators were looking in their direction with intrigue. It was only a matter of time before Popukar asked for their whereabouts and found them effortlessly.
"What if we went to the Convalescence Garden to hide? Big sister Perfumer could vouch for us and hide us somewhere Popukar can't find us!" Suzuran suggested.
The Doctor adjusted his mask, suddenly conscious of it now that it came in handy. "Are you two allergic to pollen?"
"W-We don't know..." Suzuran answered, giggling sheepishly.
"Well, we can't afford to get caught after making it this far. Follow me."
Their little game of hide-and-seek transpired into a game of tag with how long they jogged around Rhodes Island. A brief stop to ride the elevator served little purpose as they resumed their sprint to their destination when the doors opened. When they arrived at the Convalescence Garden, the Doctor leaned against the doorframe, unable to catch his breath.
Off in the distance, Perfumer noticed the three of them enter. She waved her hands at the younger Vulpos to greet them. She redirected her attention to the Doctor with a smile and presented him with some flowers. "What's the occasion, Doctor?"
"Big sister Perfumer, we're playing a game of hide-and-seek!" Suzuran answered for the Doctor.
"Does hide-and-seek entail being out of breath?" Perfumer pondered.
The Doctor chuckled and regained his composure as he weaned off his reliance on the doorframe. He accepted the flowers in his hands and admired their beauty for a brief detour before answering her.
"Only if there's no place to hide. Speaking of which… Did you have somewhere for us to hide?"
"Hm, unless you want to hide in the supply shed. But I have to warn you, it isn't really clean, and it's dusty."
"It'll work."
Perfumer frowned but led them to a corner of the Convalescence Garden, where a shed stood. When she opened the doors, Perfumer stepped in first and tidied the place until the hiders of the game crowded her.
"I hope you don't stay in here the whole day," Perfumer warned.
"Don't worry, the game is quick." The Doctor said.
"Then I'll see you in a bit. But if you don't mind me asking, who is the seeker?"
"It's Popukar."
"Got it! Well, I'll be on the lookout then!"
Through the crack of the supply shed doors, the Doctor saw Perfumer turn around in time to hear the doors to the garden open. There was a bit of hesitation, but Perfumer greeted the newcomer.
"Welcome to the Convalescence Garden, Popukar! How may I help you? You seem to be in search of someone."
"Have you seen the Doctor, Suzuran, and Shamare anywhere? We're playing a game of hide-and-seek and I only have a few minutes left to find them... And I want to win!"
The Doctor stopped listening when he heard Shamare sniffle. It didn't take long before the one thing he hoped wouldn't happen came to fruition. It escalated in a sharp crescendo as Shamare let out a sneeze from the dust accumulating inside her nose. Deafening silence resonated throughout the atmosphere.
Commotion grew louder as Popukar's little footsteps pounded across the room. The doors slowly opened, almost like Popukar was afraid a monster was in the shed. However, when Popukar looked at all three of them huddled against the gardening tools, she raised her hands in the air and celebrated in triumphant cheer.
"Yay! I found all three of you! Lucky me!"
"Aww, we lost..." Suzuran mumbled. "Maybe if we kept running, we would have won."
"I don't know if my cardiovascular strength would hold up." The Doctor expressed, taking a step out from the shed.
Unfortunately, the Doctor's knees buckled from his exhausted state of expenditure, resulting in a momentary loss of balance. The Doctor felt Perfumer's hand wrap around his arm, stabilizing him with care.
"Are you okay, Doctor?" Perfumer asked.
"I-I'm fine, Perfumer! Just a little fatigued from all the exercise..." The Doctor turned to look at Popukar. "You found us quickly. Good job."
"Hehe! Thank you, Doctor! I'm the hide-and-seek champion now!" Popukar responded.
"Sorry for sneezing, Doctor…" Shamare apologized. Morte hung from her grasp limply, looking equally deflated.
The Doctor reached out and patted her on the head. Shamare closed one of her eyes as the Doctor's hand roamed around her head. "Don't worry about it. It was fun."
The Doctor took his hand off Shamare's head and watched the three of them gather to talk about the journey they went on. Popukar explained how she embarked on an adventure around Rhodes Island. The Cautus asked every operator who passed her if they saw the three of them anywhere. Some had answers and some of them didn't, but eventually, one of them said they saw them enter the garden.
As for Suzuran and Shamare's tale, Suzuran explained the strategy the Doctor used and the entertaining stuff they experienced along the way. There were ounces of exaggeration sprinkled throughout, but it was heartwarming to see them interact with each other.
"They're cute, aren't they?" Perfumer asked.
"I can't say no," He responded.
The peaceful moment didn't last long when the Doctor suddenly felt intimidating energy radiate in front of him. At the doorway, he saw Amiya stare at him with a tense smile.
"Doctor, I came back from my brief break to see how you were doing, but imagine my surprise when you weren't there."
"Eep! Amiya, I'll get right back to it!"
Author's Note: Edit: Some changes were made to the first three chapters to make the reading experience smoother. I might make more changes for the future ones, but they require minimum work since I already edited them properly. By the time the next update is here, which is 11/12/2023, this message will be gone. I guess consider yourself lucky if you see this message.
A game of hide-and-seek with the Doctor is exactly what the doctor ordered!
I couldn't help myself when I saw a manga chapter in the Arknights Comic Anthology, where Suzuran, Shamare, and Popukar play Oni Hunt with Hoshiguma! It was just so cute and I had to write my version of it, so you can say this entire story is mostly inspired by that chapter! If you want to read it yourself, it should be Vol. 3, chapter 4!
There are more chapters to come, so be on the lookout! This is going to be my longest Arknights story yet, so I hope you enjoy it!
With love from your favorite writer, Out4Lunch!
